TRANSPORT

Rural Bus Challenge

John Spellar: I am pleased to announce today approval of the 46 projects listed below which were submitted as bids by local authorities in this competition. This follows careful consideration of the 105 bids totalling almost 3 times the funding available submitted by authorities
	
		£ 
		
			 Authority Project Total Award 
		
		
			 Bath and NE Somerset Chew Valley Explorer 396,000 
			 Bedfordshire North East Beds Dart 751,261 
			 Buckinghamshire On Call 350,000 
			 Cheshire Taxi Rider TRACS 300,000 320,000 
			 Cornwall Penwith Corlink Transport Services 455,000 
			 Cumbria "35 Furness Express Enhancement 805,573 
			 Derbyshire Derbyshire Integrated Rural Transport Buxton & District Accessible Transport 954,000 320,960 
			 Devon The Jurassic Coast Line 665,000 
			 Durham County Durham—A Healthy Response 743,000 
			 East Riding My Bus 358,000 
			 Essex Viking Community Transport HEART scheme 193,600 
			  Epping Forest Community Transport Brokerage 99,900 
			 Gloucestershire Gloucestershire Village Link 631,750 
			 Greater Manchester Hattersly Uppermill and Mossley Partington and Cadishead 329,500 234,000 44,000 
			 Hampshire Hampshire Cango Further 735,732 
			 Herefordshire Completing the Jigsaw 794,000 
			 Hertfordshire Health and Accessible Rural Transport 265,900 
			 Isle of Wight The East Wight Villager 426,530 
			 Kent Swale Unified Network Phase 2 215,000 
			 Lancashire Garstang Super 8 476,873 
			 Lincolnshire Interconnect Building a Flexible Future 870,400 
			 Medway Tackling Social Exclusion & Isolation 336,435 
			 Merseyside Billinge Whiston Hospital Service 24,000 
			 Norfolk Broadshopper Fenland Connections 473,580 393,570 
			 North East Lincolnshire Demand Responsive Community Transport 344,512 
			 North Yorkshire Hawes-Garsdale Stationlink Increase Rural Dial-a-ride Information Centre for Community Transport 261,000 280,500 90,000 
			 Nottinghamshire Demand Responsive Transport between Newark and Bingham 479,000 
			 Shropshire Wem Minibus Links 355,694 
			 South Yorkshire Southern Communities 768,000 
			 Somerset Somerset Inclusion Bus Buddy 94,500 
			 Stockton-on-Tees The Village Bus 360,000 
			 Staffordshire Staffordshire Border Car Weaver Ward Access Bus 178,500 60,000 
			 Suffolk Grass Routes 190,720 
			 Tyne & Wear Western Links Stage 2 721,216 
			 West Sussex South Downs Route 833,000 
			 West Yorkshire Pennine Taxibus 872,020 
			 Wiltshire Wiltshire Taxi Link 169,440 
			 Worcestershire Malvern Matters 992,000

SRA Strategic Plan

Alistair Darling: The Strategic Rail Authority has today published its second Strategic Plan. I have placed copies in the Libraries of the House and it is also available on the SRA website.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Benefit Fraud (Dover)

Malcolm Wicks: On behalf of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate (BFI) inspection report on Dover District Council was published today and copies of the report have been placed in the Library. This report finds that Dover District Council has some commendable performance while some areas are very poor.
	The report identifies the positive aspects as a benefits claim form that complies with the BFI model claim form, achievement of good results from a customer survey, and Verification Framework compliance in most areas. Dover needs to: run benefit take-up campaigns; verify residency more vigorously and income in renewal claims; carry out visits to Verification Framework requirements; apply benefit periods in accordance with risk and apply the fit and proper person test before making payments to landlords.
	Speed of processing is a distinct weakness, with only 25 per cent of claims sampled being processed within targets. Breaks in payments were found in 23 per cent of renewals sampled.
	There were significant problems with all aspects of the overpayments regime. The council is undertaking a fundamental review of the overpayments service, which is to be completed and implemented by March 2003.
	The report finds that the counter-fraud area gave the greatest concern. The council's investigators were poorly trained, and were overloaded with referrals, many of which were of spurious value. Sanctions were inadequate. The report also finds evidence of failure to comply with the laws governing investigation techniques.
	In 2000–01, Dover District Council administered approximately £27 million in housing benefits. This is approximately 40 per cent. of its total gross revenue expenditure.
	The report makes recommendations to help the council address the remaining weaknesses and to further improve the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit, as well as counter-fraud activities.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is now considering the report and will be asking the council for its proposals in response to the findings and recommendations of the BFI.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Export Control Act 2002

Tessa Jowell: I have today placed in the Libraries of both Houses a Consultation Paper on a draft Order relating to the export of objects of cultural interest to be made under the Export Control Act 2002. The text is also available on the DCMS Departmental website at http://www.culture.gov.uk/heritage/export_controls.html.

LORD CHANCELLOR

Legal Services Ombudsman

Rosie Winterton: My right hon. and noble Friend, The Lord Chancellor has appointed Dr. Zahida Manzoor as Legal Services Ombudsman.
	The appointment is for a 3 year fixed term in the first instance and Dr. Manzoor is expected to take up post on 3 March 2003.
	Dr. Manzoor is co-founder and marketing director of her own company. She was formerly a member of the NHS Policy Board, Regional Chair of the NHS Executive, Northern and Yorkshire Regions, Commissioner and Deputy Chair of the Commission for Racial Equality and Chair of the Bradford Health Authority.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Farm Incomes

Margaret Beckett: Revised estimates of farm income, output and productivity of agriculture during 2002 were published on 30 January. These confirm the increase in farm incomes forecast last November, and indicate a rise of 15 per cent. (14 in real terms) compared to 2001.
	Details have been placed in the Library of the House.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Police Complaints Authority (Shootings)

John Denham: I am pleased to be able to place in the Library a copy of the Police Complaints Authority's (PCA) Review of Shootings by Police in England and Wales between 1998 and 2001.
	On behalf of my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary, I commissioned this Review under Section 79(1) of the Police Act 1996 which allows the Home Secretary to call for a report from the PCA on issues of concern. I announced the terms of reference to Parliament on 20 November 2001. They were:
	"The review will consider what lessons can be learnt from the investigations into police shootings, which have resulted in death or injury since January 1998.
	In particular the review will look at:
	The planning, control and conduct of operations;
	The way in which the concerns of the bereaved families were addressed, and how they were kept informed of the progress of the investigation; and
	The training and skill needs of the police officers involved in such operations, particularly at command level."
	I am very grateful to the PCA, and, in particular, Mr. Alan Bailey, Dr. David Best and the two Deputy Chairs for the hard work and expertise they have brought to this report.
	I welcome the report and its positive findings. It covers a very difficult and demanding area of police work where great professionalism is needed. Rightly, it gives credit to police forces for the small number of shots discharged by police officers in armed responses and praises much policing practice. The overall picture is very positive and it gives clear guidance on how best to manage firearms operations to minimise threat to life.
	I commissioned the report in order to make sure that the lessons from each individual incident could be learned and shared by all forces. While there is always understandable public concern when someone who is shot turns out to be unarmed, we must recognise that armed police face enormously difficult decisions. Sometimes these decisions have tragic consequences, and it is nonetheless essential to ensure that operational procedures, training and support to officers minimises the number of avoidable deaths and injuries.
	Our police officers are not routinely armed. The use of firearms is a rare last resort, considered only where there is a serious risk to public or police safety. When it is necessary for police officers to deploy firearms, it is vital that they are properly equipped and expertly trained, to respond effectively to the serious situations they have to face. Police use of firearms is subject to stringent guidelines from the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), which govern training, control and the conduct of operations. This is reflected in their excellent record against international standards.
	The PCA report makes a number of recommendations to further improve the management of firearms incidents. Many of these are already underway, and I have published an action plan today, which I will also place in the Library, which sets out how we will work with the police service and other agencies to build on existing good work, and take forward the recommendations in the report. We are determined to build on the good practice already in place by working closely with the police and others—including mental health professionals.
	It is essential that our police have effective less lethal alternatives available to them. The search for suitable less lethal options is complex and requires in-depth consideration of a range of issues. After rigorous medical and operational trials, and at ACPO's request, we have agreed that pilots on taser use will go ahead. If any less lethal options are ultimately recommended to police these must provide real tactical solutions to disorder and violence.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Electricity (Trading and Transmission) Bill

Brian Wilson: The draft Electricity (Trading and Transmission) Bill, which will bring forward the British Electricity Transmission and Trading Arrangements (BETTA), is being published today. The Trade and Industry Committee will now undertake pre-legislative scrutiny of the Bill and will issue a report by Easter.
	Copies of the draft Bill and draft Explanatory Notes are available in the House Library. A Regulatory Impact Assessment has been published on DTI and Ofgem's websites.

Export Control Act 2002

Nigel Griffiths: I have today published a consultation document on the secondary legislation to be introduced under the Export Control Act 2002. This makes provision for new controls on the transfer abroad of military technology by electronic means; the transfer of technology by any means or provision of technical assistance overseas which may be used in connection with weapons of mass destruction programmes; and trade in military equipment between overseas countries. The consultation document contains the drafts of the orders, explains how the new controls are expected to operate in practice and invites views on their practical implementation. The partial Regulatory Impact Assessment provides an initial assessment of the impact of the new controls and invites views on the estimated compliance costs. The consultation period will last for 3 months, closing on 30 April 2003. Copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

DEFENCE

Iraq (Reservists)

Geoff Hoon: In my statement on 7 January 2003, Official Report, columns 23–25. I informed the House that I had made an Order under Section 54(1) of the Reserve Forces Act 1996 to enable the call out of reservists for possible operations against Iraq. I explained that the overall scale of mobilisation would depend upon the continuing evolution of our contingency planning, that we envisaged initially sending out sufficient call-out notices to secure around 1,500 reservists, and that we would issue further notices as appropriate.
	That process of calling out and mobilising reservists is underway. By 24 January 2003, the Services had issued 2,063 notices. As I explained in my statement on 7 January, the number of notices issued has to be significantly larger than the number of reservists required, to allow for the proportion who are likely to be genuinely unavailable.
	Further contingency planning has now clarified the likely size and shape of our additional requirements, in particular in the light of the decision we reached recently on the size and composition of land forces that we plan to deploy, which I described in my statement on 20 January, Official Report, columns 34–35. Our latest assessment is that our overall requirement for reservists is likely to be up to 6,000, including those currently in the process of mobilisation. We will now issue further call-out notices over the coming weeks to enable us to meet this requirement. The size of the requirement will remain under review as our planning continues.